Priest Shot Dead In Zanzibar; Pastor Beheaded On Mainland

ZANZIBAR, TANZANIA (BosNewsLife)--
A Catholic priest was shot dead Sunday, February 17, on his way to
church in Tanzania's semi-autonomous island of Zanzibar, just days after
a pastor was beheaded by suspected Muslim extremists on the mainland,
officials and Christians said.

"Father Evarist Mushi was blocked by two young men at the entrance of
the church" in Zanzibar City, the capital, where "one of the attackers
shot him in the head," said the island's police spokesman Mohammed Mhina
in published remarks.

It was the second such attack on the Muslim-majority island of 1.2
million people in recent months. On Christmas Day, gunmen shot and
seriously wounded a Catholic priest as he returnedhome from church.

Police did not know whether both attacks were related, but local
Christians said there has been a rise in Islamic attacks against
individual believers and churches.

Sunday's shooting came while on the mainland, in Tanzania's Geita
Region, Christians were mourning the violent death of a pastor of an
Assemblies of God Church.

PASTOR BEHEADED

Pastor Mathayo Kachili was reportedly beheaded Monday, February 11,by
what witnesses called a mob of Muslim extremists and "radicals".

Police commander Denis Stephano told reporters that the killing in
Buseresere town was sparked by tensions over whether Christians were
allowed to open and operate butcheries in the area.

The killing sparked deadly riots between religious Christians and
Muslims, with at least one attacker reportedly dying of his injuries,
before police was able to intervene.

Pastor Kachili leaves behind a wife and several children who depended on his salary to make a living, Christians said.

In a reaction, rights group International Christian Concern (ICC)
suggested that that this was part of a wider Islamic campaign against
Christians in East Africa.

MORE VIOLENCE

"Just last week, two Christian pastors in Garissa, Kenya were attacked
by Islamic extremists suspected to be connected with [militant group]
al-Shabab," explained William Stark, ICC regional manager for Africa.

"The increase of attacks on Christians can be linked to the spread of
radical Islam across East Africa. Groups like al-Shabab and its
sympathizers have shown that they are not afraid to attack and kill
Christians in countries that are traditionally thought of as Christian,"
he told BosNewsLife in a statement.

Stark isn't optimistic about the future. "Until the issue of radical
Islam is confronted in East Africa, we will continue to see attacks on
Christians and other minority groups. If ignored, the spread of radical
Islam has the potential to turn East Africa into another Nigeria or Mali
where Christians are persecuted and killed by the hundreds."

5 comments:

Anonymous
said...

I am still surprised how the Baraza La Waislamu ia Tanzania have kept a low profile on this matter. These fanatics are hoping to incite violence which has been brewing for a while in Tanzania. CCM government must now take concrete steps to protect and prevent future all out religious war.

About Me

I worked for Tanzania's Daily News for 11 years leaving as a Senior Reporter. I love acting, films, short story writing and cooking. I blog in English and Swahili. I am a member of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and AFTRA.
You can contact me at chemiche3@yahoo.com.